


But Come, Young Waverer, Come, Go With Me

by dahlstrom



Series: Forswear It, Sight [4]
Category: SKAM (TV)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-23
Updated: 2017-01-23
Packaged: 2018-09-19 13:10:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9442061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dahlstrom/pseuds/dahlstrom
Summary: Part four of theForswear It, Sightseries. Mostly a flashback to Eskild and Isak's first meeting at the gay bar during Season 2, and bookended with post-Season 3 scenes including Even. Eskild POV.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Title taken from _Romeo and Juliet,_ Act 2 Scene 3.
> 
> This was requested by [my darling Tracy](http://liftupyourhands.tumblr.com)! Special thanks to [adamparishe](http://adamparishe.tumblr.com) and [isaksbestpillow](http://isaksbestpillow.tumblr.com) for their assistance. Enjoy! <3

Because Even has become such a fixture in the apartment, Eskild doesn’t even bat an eye when he enters the kitchen Sunday morning and sees him sitting at the table, nursing a cup of coffee while scrolling through his phone. 

“Morning,” Eskild says, drawling the word slightly and smiling when Even looks up at him. Just because he’s gotten used to Even being around doesn’t mean he isn’t always happy to see such a fine specimen of man in boxers and a t-shirt in his kitchen. 

“Hi,” Even replies, returning the smile before going back to his phone.

There’s still coffee, so Eskild opens the cabinet to get out a mug for himself, but he lets out a loud sigh at the sight of last night’s dishes still sitting dirty in the sink. _Isak’s_ dishes, to be precise. “So lazy,” he mutters, and forcefully turns on the water faucet.

“I was going to do them, sorry,” Even says, and when Eskild glances back at him he’s already half-standing. 

Eskild waves a hand at him to sit back down. “Why? He brought them in here, I heard him.”

“Well, we both used them, so...”

“Doesn’t matter,” Eskild says, turning his attention back to the sink. “You’re a guest, so he should take care of it.” Realizing that might have sounded harsher than he intended, he looks over his shoulder at Even with an apologetic smile. “I mean, you’re here a lot - which is completely fine, as we’ve all said - but you don’t pay rent, so technically... guest status.” He gestures at Even with the dish scrubber and winks. “No cleaning necessary.”

Even laughs, nodding. “Okay, if you say so.”

“I do,” Eskild replies, going back to washing the plates and cutlery. “Honestly though, would it kill him to help out around here without one of us badgering him to do it?” he adds, speaking more to himself than to Even now. He loves Isak to death, he really does, but it’s been like this since day one and it’s getting harder to write it off as Isak simply being a teenager.

“I don’t know, I mean, the first time I was over here - remember that rave party you guys had? I came back up after getting Sonja into a cab and Isak was in here cleaning up and emptying beer cans into the sink.”

Eskild’s jaw actually drops and he slowly turns to look at Even again. “You’re not serious.”

“I am.”

“No, really, you don’t have to cover for him.”

“I’m not!” Even laughs. 

“We should’ve marked that day on the calendar,” Eskild says, shaking his head in disbelief. Dishes done, he dries his hands on a towel and gets his coffee at last, then joins Even at the table. “Don’t get me wrong, he’s a handsome little fuck, but he’s still quite _the little fuck,_ so sometimes I just don’t know how you can put up with him.”

Even’s eyes go somewhere else, getting all soft and a bit misty, and he has this little half-smile on his face and some color high on his cheeks and it’s all adding insult to injury for Eskild, really, because _what in God’s name could he be thinking about right now?_ “Ah, I don’t know,” Even says at last, his voice just a little bit husky. “He’s another part of me, so when I met him I had to do whatever I could to keep him close.”

Eskild has to try extremely hard to not roll his eyes, but Even can obviously still tell, because he laughs again and adds, “Sorry, I could probably say about a hundred other things like that but I don’t want you to vomit, so I’ll just shut up.”

“Appreciated.”

They sip from their mugs in unison, and then Even leans forward and says, “I mean, you must know kind of what I’m talking about. You saw something in him, too. When you brought him to live here.”

Even’s got him there, Eskild can’t deny it. He tilts his head back and forth, scowling, and finally nods. “I suppose so.”

“I’ve been really curious about how that happened, exactly,” Even says, raising his coffee for another quick sip. “Isak told me a vague version of it one time, but he also said that he doesn’t remember much of it because he was so drunk.”

Although the request isn’t specifically made, it’s clearly there, and Eskild scrunches up his face. “Oh, that’s such a long story. And too sad for a Sunday morning.”

“Please?” Even asks.

Those disarming blue eyes are just so damn earnest that Eskild can barely put up a fight. “Okay,” he sighs, “But I need more coffee first.” He doesn’t really, but he does need a few moments to get his thoughts in order. Should he tell the _whole_ story, warts and all? And he very quickly realizes that he’s going to have to for everything to make sense.

So he comes back to sit at the table again with a brave smile, and takes a deep breath. “First of all, you have to promise me that you won’t get mad at Noora and Eva for what I’m about to tell you.”

Even looks both surprised and intrigued, and he licks his lips with a small frown before nodding. “I promise.”

“Okay. It was around... the end of April last year, beginning of May. They were like, we have this friend who we think is gay, and showed me Isak’s Instagram, and I said okay, I’ll see what I can find out. And I did follow his Insta and we exchanged a couple of messages, but I wasn’t digging or anything, because I felt weird about it. And it kept bugging me, so a couple of days later I went to Noora and was going to give her a little talking-to but William was over - you know about William, right? Yeah, I didn’t want to lecture her in front of him so I just told her that Isak wasn’t gay, mostly to just shut her down.”

Even takes all of this in, staring silently at the table for a moment, and Eskild can’t read the expression on his face. Finally Even just gives a little nod and looks back up at him expectantly. He’s clearly not going to comment out loud and is inviting Eskild to continue with his story, so Eskild takes another fortifying gulp of coffee.

“So fast-forward a couple of weeks, and I was out one weekend, just bar-hopping and trying to maybe find somebody to hook up with because, honestly, it had been a little while and things around here at home were sort of crazy. It was getting pretty late, so I said to myself--”

\---------

 _One last stop, and then you’re going the fuck home to jerk off._ Eskild was very firm with himself on this point. He’d saved Elsker until the last bar because it was where he usually ended up having the most luck, but even that one was hit or miss since so many straight people were flocking to it now. 

He flashed a dazzling smile at the bouncer, who waved him in blank-faced and silent. Once inside, Eskild stood close to the door for a few moments, just surveying the scene - it was nearly 2am, but the place was still pretty packed, and as far as he could tell the ratio of straights to gays wasn’t _too_ insulting. He’d spotted a few likely targets already, but one in particular caught his gaze and held it - a tall blond drink of water about halfway across the room. After making an obvious show of checking to make sure his pants were quite smooth across his ass, Eskild headed in that direction, determined to at least get his crotch groped before this night was over.

However, he’d only taken a few steps when some other guy stopped directly in front of Mr. Tall and Blond, and T & B seemed to prefer that one at once, stopping Eskild right in his tracks. He had half a mind to walk over there anyway, but then he noticed someone else in his peripheral vision, someone who, if he was correct about their identity, would make for a more interesting conversation partner than Mr. Giant Ken Doll probably could have been.

Eskild had to squint a little just to make sure, but there was no doubt in his mind. He’d know that sinful little Cupid’s bow mouth anywhere, regardless of the fact that this was his first time seeing it in person.

He was only a few paces away, sitting alone on a barstool, and luckily the one on his right was empty. Before anyone else could take it, Eskild moved swiftly and slid onto it, and tapped the guy on the arm.

“Either I’m completely blind, or you’re Isak, right? Isakyaki on Insta?”

The guy - it _was_ Isak, confirmation or not - slowly swiveled his head toward Eskild and stared at him through narrowed eyes. Immediately Eskild realized that the kid was _shitfaced,_ half-slumped over the bar just to keep himself from slithering right to the floor.

“Yeah,” Isak replied. “Do I know you?”

“I’m Eskild, Noora’s roommate. We chatted a couple of times?” Eskild extended his hand out of pure habit, but wasn’t offended when Isak didn’t take it. “Remember?”

Isak licked his lips and tipped his head back a little, as if viewing Eskild at a different angle would help since he was apparently incapable of widening his eyes at this point. “Ohhhh, yeah! Yeah, man.” Eskild wasn’t sure if he was telling the truth or not. “What’s up? Cool to see you here.”

“I’m a little surprised to see _you_ here,” Eskild replied, because really, fuck subtlety right now.

“Ahh,” Isak said, and somewhat unwisely swept a hand through the air as if surveying his very own kingdom. “My kind of place, you know?” He started to slide off his stool and quickly gripped the edge of the bar again, blinking hard. “Shouldn’t’ve done that,” he mumbled.

Something about him was making Eskild feel uneasy. There was no drink in front of him and he didn’t seem to be waiting for a fresh one, so he’d either gotten so drunk that they’d cut him off, or he’d showed up here already plastered. If it was the former, most bartenders would have given him water, at least, so Eskild was leaning toward him having arrived like this. 

“How much have you had?” Eskild asked him, some little voice in his head groaning at him for having said such a thing, but he didn’t care. Isak was underage, alone, and way more drunk than normal rebellious teenager standards. Something wasn’t right here.

Isak blew air through his lips, staring off into space as he appeared to be thinking about the question, and finally shrugged, giving Eskild a lazy grin. “Math’s not my best subject.”

Eskild tried to smile back at him, but he suspected it came out as more of a grimace. “I’d offer to get you another one, but I’m pretty sure you’re good for now.”

“Aw, could you? That’d be so... I don’t even care what kind, just anything. Pretty please?” He was actually tugging at Eskild’s arm now, almost clawing it.

“No, come on.”

“Please? I really need another one.” 

“Listen,” Eskild said firmly, definitely uncomfortable now, worry coursing through him. “You’re done, okay? Where do you live? Let’s go ahead and get you home.” Because for some stupid fucking reason _this_ was now his mission for the night - not hooking up, not even having a nice conversation with a nice guy his own age, but dealing with this utterly wasted teenager.

But Isak just started chuckling and let go of Eskild’s arm, resuming his previous posture of hunching over the bar. “Nah, I’m good. I’m not going home.”

“I think it’d be best if you did, Isak.”

“Not. Going. Home.” And there was something more than drunk stubbornness in his tone, but Eskild couldn’t identify it.

“Okay, fine. Can I call a friend of yours or something?”

Isak cast his eyes downward and started fiddling with a loose thread on the cuff of his hoodie, replying so quietly that Eskild could barely make out the words. “No, I’m not gonna bother anybody with my shit.”

“You just going to sleep here, then?” Eskild snapped.

“Yeah. Yeah, do you think they have a sofa somewhere?” Isak said, now turning his eyes back to Eskild. “Or whatever, just the floor’d be okay. Anywhere but home.”

“Why don’t you want to go home?” He’d asked before he could stop himself, but he didn’t feel bad at all once it was out there. That was the key question here, the driving force behind whatever was happening to this kid. 

But Isak was ignoring him, staring off in the opposite direction, and it took Eskild a moment to follow his gaze. What he landed on should have been surprising, but really... wasn’t at all - a handsome dark-haired guy who was standing with two girls. If Eskild hadn’t been able to tell at once that he was straight, he probably would have stared at him, too. But Isak clearly couldn’t tell, or didn’t care, or who knew what, because he was definitely gawking, his eyes gone dark and his mouth actually hanging open a little bit.

Suddenly Eskild felt like smacking his own forehead. Noora and Eva had been right, after all. He’d deal with his feelings on _that_ later, because he was fairly certain he’d figured out what was going on here, and felt an even stronger kinship with Isak take hold.

“Is that why you don’t want to go home?” he asked, nudging Isak’s arm. “Your parents don’t approve?” 

“The fuck?” Isak blurted out, tearing his eyes away from the guy and looking - no, almost _glaring_ \- at Eskild again. “I’m not gay, whatever. I just thought I knew that guy for a minute.”

Eskild had to wince. _One problem at a time,_ he thought, and fixed a smile on his face, putting a hand over his heart. “My bad, sorry. Seriously though, why not home?”

He was worried that he’d broken whatever little bond the two of them had here and that Isak would just be rude to him now, but thankfully Isak seemed to settle down a little. The iciness left his eyes, anyway, but his tone was still quite annoyed as he said, “None of your fucking business, okay? I’m just not going back there tonight. I’ve had enough of it. So quit asking.”

“Okay,” Eskild replied softly, giving him an understanding nod. Isak obviously had his reasons and it would be best not to argue or try to get any more out of him. “Is it cool if we just sit here for a little while, though?”

“Sure,” Isak said, and what the fuck, now that stupidly drunk grin was back on his face. “Can I have a beer?”

“ _No,_ I told you.” Eskild had to laugh in spite of everything, because this kid was a piece of work. “You know what, I think we should just go take a walk.”

“Walk? Fuck that, you’re crazy,” Isak mumbled, and actually laid his forehead flat on the bar as if in protest. “Not going anywhere.”

“Nope, come on, let’s walk.” Eskild stood up and began tugging at Isak’s arm, quickly glancing around to make sure no one was watching, because this could easily be construed the wrong way. “Come on, Isak! Fresh air, nice night out. Let’s take a walk.”

Isak continued muttering, but he allowed Eskild to pull him up standing without much resistance. Or help, for that matter, because Eskild practically had to drape one of Isak’s arms around his neck in order to keep them both balanced. He’d also underestimated how freaking _tall_ Isak was, shit. No wonder the bouncer had let him in.

They made it outside without incident, and once the cool night air hit his face Isak seemed to have better control of himself and could walk - somewhat - without Eskild having to hold him up. 

He hadn’t really thought this through. His best hope was to get Isak walking around and hopefully sobered up enough to get him to tell Eskild where home was, and Eskild could get him a taxi or something. So they just wandered some, not really talking, circling first one block and then another. 

“Still not going home,” Isak said at last, sounding much more lucid than he had yet. “I mean, if that’s your plan it’s a big fat fail.”

And all at once, Eskild knew just what to do. “Who said anything about _your_ home?” he asked, smiling at him, and gently pulled at Isak’s arm, veering him in a different direction.

The only slight snag they hit was when a car raced past them with “Chandelier” by Sia blaring from its speakers, and Isak started to sing the chorus in a horribly loud and off-key voice that would have very likely brought them to the attention of the cops if Eskild hadn’t shut him up as quickly as possible. Isak mostly quieted down after that, just muttering to himself every now and then, but he wasn’t asking any questions and was simply allowing himself to be led. 

Because Eskild was taking him to the apartment, of course. Where else? It was perfect timing, really - Linn had gone home for the weekend, and Noora was in her own little world lately and had barely left her bedroom. He’d let Isak sleep this off and worry about tomorrow when it came, and maybe beyond that as well... the wheels were turning in his head, slowly but surely.

When they stopped outside Eskild’s building, Isak spoke for the first time in several blocks. “Where’s...” and just gestured at the front door instead of asking the rest out loud.

“Mine,” Eskild answered. “Mine and Noora’s. And Linn’s, but she’s not home.”

Instantly, Isak stepped away from him, eyes narrowed. “I told you I’m not gay. This isn’t-- I’m not gonna--”

Oh, _fuck._ “No! No, no no, God, sorry. Not that. Just... you can sleep here tonight. That’s all.” He was almost laughing, the idea was so ridiculous, even though he could totally see how Isak might have arrived at that conclusion. “I swear. I just didn’t want you sleeping on the street or something. Everything’s cool.”

“You don’t even know me,” Isak said stubbornly, not relaxing in the slightest.

“No, but I know Eva, and Eva cares about you.” That was as much as he could say right now, since he didn’t even know himself all the reasons why he was doing this. 

Isak still regarded him with suspicion but didn’t say anything else, and followed Eskild inside the lobby, then up the stairs. To Eskild, he seemed at least halfway to sober - they’d been walking for at least 30 minutes, so he wasn’t surprised - but he still sagged against the wall with his eyes nearly closed while Eskild unlocked the apartment door. “Tired?” Eskild asked, plucking at Isak’s elbow to encourage him inside.

“Yeah,” Isak replied softly, and squinted against the light when Eskild flicked it on despite the fact that the hallway had been brightly lit. The two of them took off their shoes by the door in silence, and then Eskild turned on more lights as he moved across the living room. 

“Linn’s, and Noora’s is over there,” he told Isak, pointing to closed bedroom doors. “Kitchen there, bathroom down the hall on the right. And this one’s mine,” he added, stepping over to his own door and opening it. “You can have the bed, I’ll sleep out here.” He reached inside to turn on that light as well, not taking his eyes from Isak.

If it was possible to look uncomfortable and supremely grateful at the same time, Isak was accomplishing it like a champ just then. He shuffled his feet and stared down at the floor for a moment, then swept past Eskild with a mumble of thanks and entered the bedroom. Though Isak’s back was to him, Eskild saw his head slowly move in each direction to take everything in as he stood quite still. Would he even sleep in there, Eskild suddenly wondered, or would he change his mind and race back out onto the street?

“Um,” Isak said then, and Eskild felt his heart lurch into his throat, quickly preparing a speech to get him to stay. Isak was hanging on the doorframe facing Eskild, but not looking at him. “Is Noora around?” he asked quietly. “I just, I don’t--” His breath seemed to catch, and he swallowed hard, closing his eyes as he slowly exhaled. “I don’t know if I want her to know I’m here.”

 _If I want **anyone** to know I’m here,_ was what he was really saying, Eskild thought, recalling what he’d said earlier when asked if Eskild could call a friend for him. 

“Noora’s deep into her own shit right now,” Eskild told him, hoping Isak wouldn’t ask for details because he didn’t have any to give. She still wouldn’t tell him what was going on with her. “If she happens to come out of her room and see me sleeping on the sofa, I’ll pretend I just passed out there. But I seriously doubt you have to worry about seeing her.”

Isak nodded, barely a flicker of confusion in his eyes over anything he’d just heard. “Okay,” he said. “Um, thanks. For...” He trailed off, seemed to become lost in thought for a moment, and then shook his head while shrugging. “For all this. Thanks.”

“No problem. We can talk more in the morning if you want.”

But from the way Isak just closed the door without answering, Eskild wasn’t sure if that would be happening.

He laid awake for quite a while, staring up at the ceiling and mulling over options. At several points he chastised himself for even getting involved, because what was Isak to him? It wasn't the bond of gayness, even though it was painfully clear that he was closeted - Eskild thought he’d shoved himself so deep in there that it would take quite something to get him out. No, it was more than that. As he finally drifted into a fitful sleep, he thought he heard Noora crying softly in her room, and then it hit him - he couldn't help her right now, so some part of him had decided to help Isak instead. 

Eskild disliked sleeping on the sofa, so he was awake fairly early. Having no clue when Isak would emerge, and in what state of mind he’d be, he just took a shower, ate a little breakfast, and settled back into the living room with the TV set at a low volume, idly flipping channels for a while. By eleven o’clock, he was starting to get a little concerned, and was on the verge of barging in to wake Isak up when Isak himself opened the door, looking rumpled and grouchy. 

“Hi,” Eskild said, taking care not to be too loud.

“Hi,” came the scratchy-voiced reply, and Isak stumbled a little as he started to cross the living room. “Gotta pee,” he mumbled, almost tripping over his own bare feet again when he reached the hallway.

“Tea?” Eskild called after him. “Or coffee?”

“Coffee.” The bathroom door almost slammed behind him, and Eskild’s desire to be hospitable dimmed a little. But he got up with a sigh anyway and headed for the kitchen. 

It was several minutes before Isak joined him there, still quite bleary-eyed, but Eskild noticed that his hairline was wet so he’d apparently splashed some water on his face. He took the offered coffee mug with a very quiet word of thanks, leaning against the counter as he held it between both hands for a moment.

“Are you going home today?” Eskild asked, not really in the mood for delicately probing questions at this point. He was irritated with himself, but he was in too deep to quit now unless Isak completely rejected his help.

Isak shrugged in answer, looking at the floor as he took his first sip of coffee. His face finally smoothed out a little then, and he took another sip, and then another. “This is good, thanks.”

“Look,” Eskild said pointedly, just wanting to get this over with. “You don’t have to tell me why you don’t want to go home or whatever shit is happening there if you don’t want to. But I do need you to tell me if it would be better for everyone involved if you left there.”

Isak lowered his mug a little and stared directly at him for once, his jaw hanging slack. Eskild’s heart was pounding and he immediately wished he could take back what he’d said, or at least soften it some, because the words were hanging in the air like a foul smell. But he wasn’t going to apologize, because then Isak would almost certainly not tell him a damn thing.

“Better for everyone?” Isak repeated in a whisper. “Not-- not everyone, I don’t think.”

At last, _something._ Without a word, Eskild crossed to the table and sat down, and nudged another chair out with his foot for Isak. It actually surprised him a great deal when Isak sank into the chair, and even more when he set down his coffee very gently and let out a deep, sorrowful sigh.

And then, he began to talk. 

\---------

“It’s kind of weird that I’m telling you this part right here at the table where it happened,” Eskild says to Even, now refilling both of their coffee mugs for the third time. “Anyway...”

Even’s been hanging on every word, completely enthralled and hardly interrupting at all. In a way, Eskild is glad that he’s hearing the story from his point of view instead of from Isak’s, because he doubts Isak would tell him _everything_ like this, and he doesn’t know how much Isak really remembers to begin with.

“He said that his dad had left a few months earlier, and it was just him and his mom. I asked him why his dad was gone, and he got quiet, and just drank some more coffee, and I thought he was just trying to figure out how to put it into words. But when he went on, then I could tell that he’d actually been debating how blunt he should be, and apparently he decided to just go for it, because he started telling me stuff that chilled my blood. How she’d wander around totally silent for days on end, not eating or sleeping, and then suddenly go off ranting at him, yelling Bible verses or other stuff that he couldn’t even figure out. He’d been dealing with it as well as he could but he was just worn out, sick of not knowing how to take care of her. And that’s why he’d said he wasn’t sure if it would be best for everyone if he just left, because--”

“Because he didn’t know what would happen to her if he left her by herself,” Even finishes, his voice barely above a whisper. 

“Right. And he was so _bitter,_ his nerves were just shot. One minute he’d be talking about how much he loved her and how hard it was to see her like this, and the next he’d be calling her psycho, and--”

“Stop lying to him.” The sudden words make both Eskild and Even jump, and they look at the kitchen doorway to see Isak standing there, eyes blazing. “I _never_ called her psycho. I never used that word.” 

Eskild is still too startled to say anything, but Even extends a hand toward him, smiling warmly. “Good morning, how long have you been there? Come here.”

But Isak doesn’t move, and now Eskild can see that he’s actually trembling a little. His expression is a combination of anger and fear, and his next words are directed solely at Even, as if Eskild isn’t there at all. “You have to believe me, I didn’t use that word.”

“I believe you. It’s okay, come here.”

When he sees Isak stumble slightly as he moves toward them, Eskild is thrown right back to that morning, and smiles tiredly. He feels like the worst kind of intruder watching the two of them - Isak cups Even’s face between his hands, whispering over and over that he hadn’t said it, that if he’s wrong and he actually had said it then he’s _so sorry,_ he hadn’t known any better back then, and Even just keeps reassuring him, kissing him gently and stroking his back and his sides until Isak calms down at last. Eskild thinks that he’s actually going to sit on Even’s lap or something and then he really will have to leave the room, but he stays standing, Even’s arm around his waist and Isak’s fingers moving slowly through Even’s hair.

“Sorry, Eskild,” Isak says quietly, extending his other hand toward him. “For freaking out like that.”

Eskild clasps his hand and gives him a smile with an understanding little nod. He knows exactly why Isak had that reaction and feels rather proud of him - for all his bitching about Isak’s laziness, he’s absolutely seen how much Isak has grown up in the last few months, and his learning how to cope with Even’s illness is a huge part of that. “And hey, I’m sorry too,” Eskild says, this having just occurred to him. “Even asked to hear the story, and I didn’t really think about whether that would be cool with you, or...?”

But Isak just waves a hand. “Nah, it’s okay. I don’t keep secrets from him.” Even, who now has his cheek leaning against Isak’s side, makes a soft ‘aww’ sound, and Isak looks down at him with a sappy little smile. “What? I don’t. And I was going to tell you this story eventually.”

“Thought you couldn’t remember it,” Even quips.

Isak opens his mouth to speak but quickly closes it again, frowning, and Eskild exchanges a knowing look with Even. “I remember _some_ of it, I guess. The stuff in the morning. But you go ahead and finish, Eskild,” he adds, nodding at him to continue. “Tell him about the basement.”

Even had just raised his coffee to his lips, and he almost chokes on it. “Basement?” he exclaims, looking wildly up at Isak, then at Eskild, and back again. “What the fuck?”

“Yeah, speaking of secrets...” Isak says quickly, giving Eskild a tight shake of his head to get him to stay quiet for another moment. Then he drops his voice to a whisper to say, “We have something terrible to tell you. I-- I wasn’t a virgin when we met. Eskild used me as his personal sex slave, in his basement S&M torture chamber.”

Eskild and Even both burst out laughing, Eskild banging his hand on the table and Even practically sliding out of his chair, while Isak just stands there with the proudest, smuggest damn smirk on his face. 

“No, no,” he says loudly after a minute, cutting across their laughter and resuming running his hand through Even’s hair. “Eskild told me I could crash in the basement of this building if I wanted. He said it wasn’t great but wasn’t super gross either, and I really didn’t know what to say. Because you were right before” -- he taps the top of Even’s head so he’ll look up, and smiles down at him when he does -- “I didn’t know what would happen to her if I just left. So we went down to look at it, and he could tell I still wasn’t sure, so he said I could just stay there if I needed to get out of my house sometime.”

“And did you?” Even asks, looking from Isak to Eskild.

“Yeah,” Isak replies. 

Eskild nods, then frowns a little. “How often, though? I was never sure.”

“Once or twice a week. Sometimes more.”

“And it was weird because we barely even talked after that,” Eskild continues. “I never knew when you were around, and I didn’t want to smother you. And I knew you felt weird about the whole thing anyway, you made me promise not to tell anyone.”

“It _was_ weird!”

“But why couldn’t you have just stayed with Jonas?” Even interrupts, and both Isak and Eskild sigh at him.

“Weren’t you listening?” Eskild asks. “And don’t you know him at all?”

“Don’t, Eskild. Baby...” Isak places a finger under Even’s chin and tilts his head back so Even can look up at him. “I was dealing with my mom by myself for months because I didn’t know how to ask for help. My dad was sending her money and stuff, but that was basically all he was doing. He just left me to deal with the stress. I wasn’t going to make Jonas have to deal with it, too. Or anybody.”

Even nods slowly, and once again, Eskild feels as though neither of them know he’s there. “Then... when did you move in here permanently?”

Isak glances at Eskild, startling him, and narrows his eyes in thought. “Over the summer, after Noora left, but I don’t remember exactly when, do you?” Eskild shakes his head. “I could tell that my mom was slowly getting better, so I was leaving her on her own for longer periods, and when I thought she’d be okay without me, I talked to my dad and we agreed it would be best if I moved out.”

“And I haven’t had a single day of peace since,” Eskild says dramatically, flinging the back of his hand up to his forehead and letting out a loud, fake sob while Even snorts and Isak just rolls his eyes.

“And on that note, I’m going to take a shower.” Isak bends down to give Even a swift kiss, and points an accusing finger at Eskild before leaving the kitchen. 

Even watches him go, and lets out a little sigh that Eskild thinks might actually mean that he misses Isak already, which... wow, either gross or the most romantic thing he’s ever heard. He stands, collecting their empty coffee mugs and carrying them to the sink, and is just about to turn on the faucet when he hears Even clear his throat behind him.

“You’re a really great friend,” Even says quietly, and Eskild turns to look at him, blushing. “ _Really_ great. If you hadn’t taken him in, who knows what would have happened. And I might never have been able to meet him.”

He’s very touched, and because he doesn’t know what else to say, Eskild just has to make a joke. “Wait, does this mean I’m responsible for the two of you getting together?” 

“I think you are, indirectly!” Even laughs. “I’ll buy you a beer sometime for that.”

Eskild makes a face before he can stop himself, and Even, somehow, knows exactly what it means. “Not beer, sorry, I forgot. A fine bottle of wine, perhaps?”

“You’re on. Well, and one more thing, if it’s not too much trouble?”

“Anything.”

“Teach Isak how to wash his fucking dishes, please. I could die happy if we accomplish just that one little thing.”

“ _I heard that, Eskild!_ ” Isak’s voice seems to fill the entire apartment, even all the way from the bathroom, and this time Even really does fall out of his chair laughing.

“I swear, I’m getting my own place this week,” Eskild mumbles, and leaves the mugs in the sink for Even to take care of. 

**Author's Note:**

> find me on [tumblr](http://dahlstrom.tumblr.com)!


End file.
